These and Those

Musings from Students of the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem

Tag Archives: change

[PEP Student] Developments in Talmud Study

Posted on March 20, 2012 by Daniel Weinreb

“Kids these days. They don’t learn like before. They have all the information at their fingertips. Confronted with a problem, they need only to glance over to a different page and lo and behold their questions are answered. Learning used to be a social process, with emphasis on learning from someone else, or better yet, Continue Reading »

[PEP Student] The Narcissistic Use of Technology In Life, and In the Classroom

Posted on March 19, 2012 by Daniel Weinreb

Cell phones seem narcissistic to me. When I’m on public transportation and another traveler subjects me to the inanities of cell-phone conversation, my blood pressure raises a few millimeters in a Sphygmomanometer. I think I’m more sensitive than most people but I don’t think I’m off the charts. The larger issue is that technologies seem Continue Reading »

[Self / Soul & Text] Radical Acceptance

Posted on March 13, 2012 by David Bogomolny

I spent last Shabbat at Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach’s moshav near the city of Modi’in, where my grandparents and other close family members live. This Shabbaton was particularly convenient for me because it allowed me to visit my family without worrying about rushing back to J’lem for Shabbat (especially during the winter). It was also quite Continue Reading »

Egalitarianism in Judaism

Posted on February 21, 2012 by Barer

Many of us who fall under the label ‘modern liberal Jew’  view women’s role (or lack thereof) in traditional Judaism to be a serious affront to our notions of egalitarianism.  ‘How can it be’ we ask, ‘that anyone could live in a Western democracy in the 21st century and subject women to secondary-citizen status in Continue Reading »

[Self / Soul & Text] The Meditation Practice

Posted on February 7, 2012 by David Bogomolny

He was sitting at a cafe in Jerusalem, typing on his laptop. He had meditated for only the third time ever that same evening, and he was ready to write about the experience, but he wasn’t sure where to begin. He was overwhelmed. Life had changed for him recently, and change, especially drastic, transatlantic, soul-searching Continue Reading »

God in Judaism

Posted on January 31, 2012 by Barer

[Cross posted from my blog] Last week at Pardes marked the end of a four-part lecture series given by professor James Kugel, one of the preeminent scholars of the Bible alive today.  He painted an extremely interesting picture in answering the question that titled the lectures: Has Modern Biblical Scholarship Killed the Bible?  The lectures Continue Reading »

Goodbyes – Fall ’11

Posted on January 22, 2012 by Naomi Zaslow

The Spring semester begins today! Here are the “goodbye” videos from the last community lunch of Fall semester:                     For those who missed it, R. Landes is taking a sabbatical this semester… he’ll be back next Fall!

[Student Profile] Esther Sterlin

Posted on January 15, 2012 by Barer

Growing up in the Sephardi community in Toronto, Esther’s Judaism derived mainly from her mother and the weekly Shabbat dinners at her grandmother’s house.  Her father, who comes from an essentially secular background, did not push for such a traditional upbringing, and Esther fondly remembers being snuck into McDonalds by her father, where he would Continue Reading »

CATA vs. Egged

Posted on January 12, 2012 by Lauren Schuchart

Originally posted here.   For the past 7 years, I’ve lived in the little town of State College, Pennsylvania. One of the primary modes of transportation around the Penn State campus is the CATA bus system. If you’re not familiar with it, allow me to paint a picture: The bus makes two loops around campus: Continue Reading »

My Guys

Posted on December 19, 2011 by Lauren Schuchart

From my blog: In Jerusalem, everyone has a *guy: “You want to buy fish? Oh you HAVE to go see my guy in the shuk.” “My cheese guy is the BEST. He let’s you try whatever you want.” “Time for a haircut? You have to go to my guy on Emek!” The fun, and perhaps Continue Reading »